


Snoring

by starlightwalking



Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Friendship, Gen, Hair Braiding, Injury Recovery, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:48:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27687163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starlightwalking/pseuds/starlightwalking
Summary: Elves do not snore. But that doesn't seem to stop Legolas.
Relationships: Aragorn | Estel & Legolas Greenleaf
Comments: 11
Kudos: 46





	Snoring

**Author's Note:**

> For a tumblr anon, who requested:  
> "May I request a one-shot where Legolas is sleeping (recovering from an injury and is in Imladris) and Aragorn is sitting next to him, watching over him and like braiding a strand of his hair??? tooth rotting fluff please!!! Thank you xoxo"
> 
> I wrote this intending it to be entirely gen, but feel free to interpret it as shippy if you prefer :)

Elves did not snore.

Aragorn knew that for a certainty. He had been raised among elves, with minimal contact with mortals, and while he now knew plenty of Dúnedain who snored despite their best efforts, he’d never known a single elf who snored.

Until now.

Legolas was… _unusual_ for an elf. At least, he was unusual compared to the other elves Aragorn was familiar with. He had a scattered memory, his voice often wavered on the high notes of his songs, he had none of the classic Noldorin decorum that so pervaded throughout Imladris. He was swift and tireless and strong and kindly, yes, but he was also often foolish and gullible and moody and irreverent.

Aragorn wondered if it was a cultural thing, if Silvan elves were truly so different than Noldor and Sindar ones. But Legolas was half Sindar, and Aragorn had met some of his friends from the Greenwood. Glándir was perfectly polite; Midhel was cheerful in a decidedly mystical way; Tauriel smiled but carried a grief behind her eyes darker than the space between the stars. All very typical attitudes for elves—and all unlike Legolas himself.

It was not that Legolas didn’t have his somber, æthereal moments. He did. But—

He _snored_ , now, asleep in Aragorn’s lap, and that could not be explained away.

Aragorn considered asking him about it, when he woke—but surely that would be rude? And perhaps it was a side effect of his injury…though how a broken wrist would affect an elf’s lungs or throat, he didn’t know.

Absently, Aragorn trailed his fingers through his friend’s hair. It was straight and fine and very soft; he was seized with the sudden desire to braid it.

Well. That would be awfully forward. They were good friends, but they’d only met ten years ago—long enough for Legolas to grow dear to Aragorn’s heart, but for an ageless elf…

Aragorn shrugged. Legolas was unlike other elves, he was reminded by another shuddering snore. He wouldn’t mind, probably.

He began to twist Legolas’ hair into braids, and Legolas let out a contented sigh. His snores quieted, then ceased altogether, as Aragorn moved from one braid to the next.

Bizarre, Aragorn thought, but if this helped…

He smiled, and didn’t stop the gentle work of his hands.

* * *

Legolas hadn’t really expected his false snoring to work—surely Aragorn knew elves better, knew _him_ better—but either his friend had fallen for the trick or he was simply too polite to ask.

And…it had its desired effect. Aragorn didn’t move, allowing Legolas to lay comfortably in his lap—and then he touched his hair, a gesture of intimacy and affection that took Legolas’ breath away for real.

As Aragorn began to braid his hair, Legolas smiled, letting his friend pamper him in his injured state, touched by the kindness and trust it took. He hoped he could show Aragorn the same, in time.

But now…the soft, steady pulling at his hair had a soothing effect even Elrond’s potions and Song had not given him, and Legolas found himself growing truly sleepy.

It was not long before he drifted into slumber, forgetting to fake his snores, safe and loved in Aragorn’s care.

**Author's Note:**

> I mentioned a couple OCs from Mirkwood; you can read about them [here](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1814863) if you'd like :)
> 
> Rebloggable on tumblr [here](https://arofili.tumblr.com/post/633631463247593472/may-i-request-a-one-shot-where-legolas-is-sleeping).
> 
> Thanks for reading, and please comment if you enjoyed!  
> You can find me on tumblr [@arofili](http://arofili.tumblr.com/).


End file.
